Science Fun!

Stimulate your students' natural scientific curiosity with activities that are fun as well as instructive.

NASA Dancing Lights

Auroras are said to be both science and art at once. The beauty, science and mythology of auroras are the subject of "Dancing Lights," an activity for students in grades 3-5 that combines science, art, reading and writing. Read on for more information.

"Dancing Lights is a science-in-literacy program about the aurora. Students in grades 3-5 write and illustrate their perceptions, ideas, and facts pertaining to auroral science. Dancing Lights is converting to a national program in 2008. Previously, the program name was 'Colorado Lights.'" -http://lasp.colorado.edu/education/dancinglights/

In the Spotlight

Turn Your Students Into Field Ecologists

They can monitor the seasonal changes
in vernal pool water levels in a vernal
pool near their school,using scientific
protocols developed by fresh water
ecologist, Dr. Betsy Colburn.
K-12 TEACHERS are invited to participate
in this hands-on project in cooperation
with Harvard Forest.
Contact Pamela Snow for program details.
For more information on Harvard Forest
research and education opportunities,
refer to our website:
http://harvardforest.fas.harvard.edu/
education/k-12.html

Pamela Snow, Harvard Forest,
324 North Main Street
Petersham, MA 01366
Phone: 978-724-3302 x246
Fax: 978-724-3595
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

All the Details

Exploring the weather: A fun way to learn
This page provides activities related to studying the weather. It is suggested that when parents or care givers take the time to explore weather with children, they can help them work on many skills at once. There’s something to learn for children of all ages, and adults, too!

Kinetic City is a science adventure for children ages 8 to 11. Kinetic City: Mission to Vearth is a new web based, interactive science story game that has been developed for individual use or team play in after school clubs.

UMass Science Outreach Club is a group of dedicated undergraduate students at UMass Amherst who perform physics demonstrations for kids in kindergarten through high school.

The Berkshire Museum: In 1903, Berkshire Museum founder, Zenas Crane, was inspired by such institutions as the American Museum for Natural Science, the Smithsonian, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. He wanted to blend the best of these establishments in a new museum for the people of Western Massachusetts. Thanks in large part to Mr. Crane himself, the Berkshire Museum’s broad and varied collections include pieces from virtually every continent, a mixture of the whimsical and the exemplary, important fine art and sculpture, natural science specimens, and ancient artifacts.

The Museum of Science Educators portion of their website: Contains links and information for teachers on subject s such as field trip resources, classroom resources, professional development and events, and student resources.

Nye Labs
Bill Nye the Science Guy's own website. Includes how-to guides on performing your own experiments, as well as info about the show.

Time for Kids
TIME For Kids is a weekly classroom news magazine that motivates kids to read! Issues cover a wide range of real-world topics kids love to learn about - and it's the best nonfiction text you'll find!

Fantastic Contraption

A fun way to learn about problem solving and physics! Build simple machines in order to get the pink wheel in the goal!